The Economy

Communitarians believe in the free market. But they emphasize that the market–getting and spending–is not the whole of life. The free market has proved a remarkable engine of prosperity, and prosperity is an indispensable foundation of a stable liberal democracy. Certainly, the major alternative to free-market economics–the command-and-control approach of socialism–has been discredited. But in capitalist societies the economic impulse is always threatening to overwhelm every other. The United States has experienced a remarkable run of economic growth; productivity has surged. But the emphasis on getting and spending has disrupted other crucial dimensions of life. In the majority of households today, both parents work. This means that one of society’s most critical tasks–child-rearing and moral formation–is often getting short shrift. In an age of electronic media, the drive for profit shapes our culture, and much of our culture is no longer suitable for the young. Politics has increasingly become a money-driven business, as candidates are forced to raise vast sums for campaigns.

The key to the communitarian approach to economics is the quest for balance–between free enterprise and the social good, between the marketplace and government, between economic freedom and society’s broader needs.

Readings and Links

Read Amitai Etzioni, “How to make a humane market,” from the New Statesman (UK).

Institute Chairman Norton Garfinkle lays out a communitarian vision of the marketplace in “Communitarian Economics,” from the Journal of Socio-Economics.

For Further Exploration

Boswell, Jonathan. Community and the Economy: The Theory of Public Co-operation. London: Routledge, 1994.